✨𝒜𝐿𝒞 𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌✨
🎧:The Goddess Of (The Fragile Divine Book 1)
🎙️: Abigail Reno, Benjamin Crow

“𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴.”

Despite being a goddess, Naia never exhibited powers and was ostracized by her family. Desperate to escape her painful past and the bleak future planned for her, she bargains with the High God of Death and Curses without knowing the terms of the curse. Soon, the time comes for her end to be fulfilled.

Tropes:
✨ Star-Crossed Lovers
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Found Family
❤️‍🩹 Hurt/Comfort
💗 Mental Health Rep
💫 Magic & curses
👥 Older MCs
🚫 Touch her & 💀
🌶️: Mild - Moderate

The Goddess Of was one of my favorite 2024 reads and this audiobook brought this story and characters to life beautifully. Abigail embodies Naia’s vulnerabilities, insecurities, and courage and Ronin’s adoration, tenderness, and fierceness with how he protects Naia.

The depiction of the dark themes, levity, and romance is sublime. The Goddess Of weaves an emotional and wistful tale of grief, sacrifice, and the power of love.

Thank you Randi, Dreamscape media, and Netgalley for the ALC opportunity. This is my honest and voluntary review.

First off, I absolutely loved this book! From the very first page, I was completely hooked. This was, easily, a five star read for me. Also the cover is absolutely breathtaking.

Second, why aren’t more people talking about it? Seriously, this story deserves all the hype! The writing was stunning—lyrical, immersive, and packed

Naia and Ronin completely stole my heart. They were raw, complex, and so deeply lovable that I found myself utterly invested in their story. They had such a beautiful, invisible string, kind of love story— their initial friendship—and their growth into more was so beautifully executed. If you loved the dynamic between Max and Tisaanah in Daughter of No Worlds, you’re in for a treat with Naia and Ronin.

This book deserves way more attention, and I’ll be recommending it to everyone I know. If you’re looking for your next great read, here you go!

(Also so excited for book two, coming out on March 5th—which just so happens to be my birthday!)

Wow! I picked this up due to a few friends' recommendations, and wow! I had a feeling I'd enjoy it, but I absolutely loved it! It's beautiful and tragic all at once. I binged this baby in 2 days... and now I can't wait for book two! I have a feeling I'll love Finnian and Cassian's story even more!

Loved the narrators! They did a wonderful job bringing emotion to this book.

Thank you NetGalley, Randi Garner, and Dreamscape Media for the Audio ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

I think this was a very beautifully written dark tale. The characters have so much depth--I mean this for both the main and side characters. The plot brought something new to a pantheon retelling which for me is always exciting! The language used is descriptive and gorgeous without being over the top.

I know this is a story with heavy subject material, but I think it was handled quite well, and I'm glad that everything that happened the characters was essentially to the story. Everything felt like it had a purpose, nothing felt like it was just supposed to shocking or have dark elements for the sake of being edgy. Every dark AND light moment showed all the facets of Naia's journey and what she had endured and grown from--and really that extended to the other characters as well. I actually really want to see how the sequel plays out.

So why is this a 4 not a 5? Well really it's a 4.5 for me. There were moments that dragged a little and I went into this blind and I should have looked up some of the tropes and CWs. That being said it would be CRIMINAL to knock it down just because there were certain elements that didn't gel with me. There is so much I enjoyed, and I am so appreciative of the author for subverting the "born sexy yesterday" trope.

Naia could have very easily been *the definition* of the trope, but instead she's got agency! She takes charge, she has goals, and she acts like the adult she is! I love that! When she does have moments of naiveté it's understandable! (No, I'm not talking about the her and sweets thing, like let the woman have her one vice she deserves it!!!) But Naia, not knowing modern slang or colloquialisms, social norms, technology etc makes sense! All of her knowledge is from ~800 years ago and she does a hell of a good job for getting up to speed. Man this was just so cool, and I HAVE to praise the VAs narrating especially Abigail Reno.

I absolutely loved this audio. I read the book but there is just something about people bringing it to life that make it so much more enjoyable!

This was a really refreshing fantasy about gods, goddesses, witches and warlocks. The setting of this felt so unique and interesting. The Japanese culture/influence was so enjoyable and again, felt different than our typical fantasy setting.

Our fmc Naia has had such an unjust life - we're talking like 800 years of hardships and heartbreak - all because she's a goddess with no title. She has this sweet naivety while also being determined and stubborn. Even the times she reacts kind of meanly towards others I felt a level of sympathy for her, because she's been treated so badly she doesn't have any trust for people.
But enter our mmc Ronin.. the way he down bad for Naia from day one had me kicking my feet. A badass in his own right but then turns into this sweet little man for Naia, like making sure she gets to eat all the sweet treats her heart could desire makes me melt!

There is some really tough subject matter involved here so I would suggest to check TW's because it does get pretty dark.

Amazing narration by Abigail Reno! She got the emotions and characters down perfectly.

Thank you Dreamscape media and Netgalley for the chance to listen to this early!

Listen, if a story is able to get me to tear up, it’s automatically five stars from me.
I loved all the characters in this book. The FMC, Naia, is one of those characters where they have struggled so much throughout their lifetime and you just want to see them happy.
She’s strong, levelheaded, and would do anything for the ones she loves. The MMC, Ronin, is a somewhat morally grey character that is so sweet, protective, and has had his own struggles he’s had to work through. The romance was well developed and absolutely felt genuine.
The plot is well thought out with flashbacks into the past that make sense and are well placed. I also really liked the settings between the lands of the gods and the mortal lands.
I tend to lean towards sticking to reading fantasy books rather than listening due to the complexity of the plots, however I felt this was still easy to follow along with as an audiobook while still maintaining a decently complex storyline.
I think the narrator, Abigail Reno, also did a great job with narrating and expressing the emotions of the characters.

Side note: I’ve probably already said this a thousand times, but I’m absolutely obsessed with this cover. Honestly it’s probably my favorite and I can’t wait to get it on my bookshelf.


SOMEWHAT OF A SPOILER BUT ALSO A HEADS UP:
There is a pregnancy trope. However, it wasn’t one that felt unnecessary. In my opinion it made sense to the plot and was really well written.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for allowing me to receive an ALC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts an opinions are my own.

Audiobook release date: February 25, 2025

"In the end, it was all Naia ever wanted. 𝑨 𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆. "

It's so nice to have such a great book offered in audio! The narrators did an amazing job with this story!

Goddess Naia was born powerless and without title. Her cruel mother's only use for her is to marry her off in her 800th year in order to break a curse that keeps her bound under the sea. In a last-ditch effort to escape her arranged marriage, Naia confronts Cassian, the High God of Death and Curses. She agrees to accept an unknown curse that can be enacted at any time in exchange for him breaking the one keeping her bound to her mother. Once freed, she escapes to the mortal lands where she meets Ronin. He helps her to find her brother so that they can figure a way out of the mess she is in. However, her fate and connection to Ronin is much more complicated than it seems.

First of all, the title is brilliant and the cover is stunning. The tale inside definitely lives up to it.
There is such a big story packed into this book and it took me a minute to get my bearings, but it was so worth it! We get to explore the past and present, Gods and mortals, mythology, and modern society in contrast with the world of the Gods. The Gods and goddesses are brought to life in such a unique way. I was fascinated with the tales of their history, the magic system and how they come to power, their abilities, and their utter ruthlessness.

My heart broke so many times and it especially aches for Naia and all that she goes through. Her freedom and anything she loves is always taken from her. In the face of so much cruelty, she remains such a strong and selfless person that honestly just wants the simplest things in life and goodness, she deserves them.

There were so many intricacies to this book and I loved the way everything was woven together. The key pieces revealed throughout were continuously surprising to me. For all the questions I had, none of the answers were anything I had imagined. I do still have lots of questions and want to know so much more, so I NEED the next one!

What a brutal, yet beautiful book.

Oh I enjoyed this!

The Goddess Of took me by surprise. From the first moment I felt drawn in - the character intros, the world building, the way the author set the plot premise, it was all so very smoothly and captivating.

I’m sure the writing style plays a big part in this too. Randi Garner writes with beautiful eloquence and definition and creates images so vivid I had several moments where I was surprised how much I had immersed into the fictional world without noticing it.

The story reads like a tragic tale with hope for love and, above all, freedom. The courage to claim it and the costs that are paid for love. The way Randi Garner wrote scenes of beauty and love with the same clarity and impact of those of loss and pain struck me in this book. Especially the latter almost had a nonchalance to them - in those that is, certainly not in how they made me feel.

As for the characters, I loved Naia from the beginning. Which surprised me cause often, characters with similar stories and mentalities as she had in most of the book often annoy me. But somehow, from the very first moment I rooted for her.

The MMC is perfect and I love him so much! That’s all I’m going to say cause I want to keep this spoiler free.

The side characters were intense in the best way, most of them with a lot of contour. Every character had a role, a purpose in this story. One character in particular peaked my curiosity from the very first moment and I can’t wait to learn more about his story in book 2, since he’ll be an MMC in that one.

I listened to the audiobook and am glad I did. The narration matches the writing perfectly and Abigail Reno was the perfect choice for Naia in my opinion!

Thank you to Dreamscape Media, NetGalley and Randi Garner for an ALC of this book!

What do I have to say about this book? Not only is the cover gorgeous, the but story contained within the pages is even more beautiful. I laughed, I giggled, I raged and I cried.

The writing is poignant and captivating, and it is evident the author has poured her heart and soul into it. Naia’s character development and learning who she is outside of what the trauma has shaped her into is the driving force behind the story. Her resilience in the face of such pain and torture is awe inspiring. But seeing one person after another fail to protect and love her is enraging. Until she meets Ronin.

Ronin has his own difficult past he’s fought hard to overcome and his unwavering love for Naia had me swooning. The slow burn is so good and there are so many little moments that show the love blooming between them. Touch her and 💀 energy is high in this one.

The story takes place in various distinctly different settings and the world building is immersive across all of them. The underwater kingdom, the island, the witchy city all so unique in their atmosphere. The food on the island had me so hungry 🤣. And the witchy coffee shop in Hollow City was so cute! The story started giving witchy mafia vibes once we get to the city and I was absolutely loving it.

The found family is so heartwarming because Naia always wanted that love and support from her own family but never got it. Akane was just adorable and I loved Yuki, Avi, and Theon. There are characters that need to suffer so much more. But I was happy to see Naia and Ronin’s story wrap up beautifully the way it did.

The narrators did a fantastic job conveying the emotions of the story. They had me engaged throughout the whole book!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5
Narration: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5
Duration: 16 hrs 50 mins
Narrated by Abigail Reno; Benjamin Crow
Audiobook Pub. Date: 02.25.25

“Darkness and all; she wanted every part of him.”

🌸 Romantasy
🌿 Urban Fantasy
🌸 Touch Her & Die
🌿 Meddling Gods
🌸 Star Crossed Lovers
🌿 Found family
🌸 Mental Health Rep
🌿 Older MCs
🌸 Dual Timelines
🌿 Cliffhanger

"Happiness was a mirage, and perhaps it was better for it to remain that way. Basking in its rays of light would only make the darkness that much colder"

The Goddess Of by Randi Garner is the first book in the interconnected standalone series, The Fragile Divine series. It was everything I didn’t know I needed! I loved the world building and character development. The take on Gods and Goddesses with a Greek Mythology vibe, was chefs kiss. This was beautifully written and truly will be an immersive experience for any reader that picks it up.

Naia, our female FMC, daughter of the High Sea Goddess, is a goddess that is born without a title. She was able to overcome and persevere throughout the book. Her mother may or may not have a hidden agenda. However, you’re going to have to read to see how Naia’s story plays out.

There’s twists and turns. The ending was definitely not something I saw coming! I truly cannot wait for the second book to come out on 03.05.25!

I had the pleasure of experiencing the audiobook for this one. The narrator’s were able to take this above and beyond. I think they did a great job with the pacing and record. Highly recommend listening to it!

Thank you netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the pleasure of listing to the ALC.

A Goddess Of was an absolutely phenomenal read—without question, a five-star book. If I could give it six stars, I absolutely would. This was, hands down, some of the best writing I’ve experienced in this genre.

Randi Garner crafted a breathtaking world, immersing me in a deeply evocative story that felt both vivid and devastating. Naia’s journey was beautifully tragic, full of twists that had me sobbing, catching my breath—only to be shattered again. The layers of story and history intertwined masterfully, and each connection revealed left me in awe.

Naia was such a refreshing FMC, and Ronin was an unexpected but entirely captivating MMC—I ate up every moment. The blend of goddesses, gods, and witches was seamlessly done, never feeling overplayed but instead woven in with effortless finesse.

This book was everything. I received this as an audiobook and loved the narrators, I felt they added to the overall vibe of the book so well!

Thank you so much to Randi Garner, NetGalley, and Dreamscape Media for this ALC!

📌 A couple of my favorite quotes:
- "..how Ronin's soul ceaselessly wandered the world to find her own. Ronin, Kaleo--no matter his name, he was her other half, beneath his skin, flesh and bones, he was hers as much as she was his." 🥰
- "You are the only goddess I worship, Naia." 🔥
- Ronin's presence was warm, like being beneath the sun after centuries of being drenched in a cold rain and Naia wished to remain warm." 👏🏽👌🏽✨

This book follows the goddess Naia on her journey to get away from her abusive and powerful family. Along the way, she encounters a surprise roadblock, Ronin. Will she be able to keep him safe from everyone pursuing her?

This book was entertaining. It focused more on the personal development of Naia and flashbacks to build her story instead of plot advancement. I liked learning about her background this way, but it was hard to stay immersed in the plot since there was a lot of back and forth on the timeline. I enjoyed seeing Naia build relationships with friends as well as love with Ronin after being isolated for so long.

The audiobook was well produced and easy to follow. The character voices were distinct. I believe the audiobook added to my enjoyment of the story.

The Goddess Of by Randi Garner was an audiobook for me and I really liked the
narrators who were Abigail Reno and Benjamin Crow. Honestly they were the reason that I kept listening. I felt like it dragged a bit in the beginning but I ended up enjoying it. There was a lot of past and present and by the time I was half way in I was all in.
The chemistry was good between the MC and I liked the twist at the end. Would I listen to another by this author? Absolutely.
Thanks Dreamscape Media via NetGalley.

90% of this book was just WOW! It was a different approach to a god & mortal, 100+ year age gap. I loved the consistency of the world building and growth of the character that didn't seem forced. I really appreciated that the FMC could still critically even though they were extremely sheltered.

My only qualm is it seemed like there were a few different places the book could have ended, or pieced together differently (That was only the last few bits before the epilogue). I'm so excited to see where the overarching story is going, I can hardly wait for the next book (I'll probably still be waiting until the audiobook comes out though, I almost never visually read a whole ebook/physical copy).

Abigail Reno's casting & narration were nicely matched to the main character. Her dictation and audio quality was crisp enough for me to listen at my preferred 2-3x speed.

Note + not sure if it was just the NetGalley app or not, but the chapters read did not match with the chapter listed on the file (example: it was chapter 15, but the display said 16).

Title: I was kinda confused and totally didn't get the title until I read the book..... it makes so much more sense as to why it was chosen... I totally get it now and think it's perfect.

I wanted to like this more than I did. I think Garner writes in a really descriptive, eloquent way but I felt the plot of this book just dragged. I kept waiting for something interesting to happen and it would in little spurts, but there was so much lull in between, especially in the beginning that it was hard to hold my interest.

The Goddess Of was a completely unexpected read, a raw, at times heartbreaking, but also incredibly sweet and moving story.

Naia has a very difficult past, which has broken her down over and over again but has never managed to break her completely. Seeing her take charge of her life again, learn to trust, and find her strength was beautiful, even if painful.

Ronin is an enigmatic figure, but little by little he opens up and allows us to get to know him better, and what we find is a man willing to do anything for his loved ones. He too, like Naia, has suffered much. This is why the relationship between the two of them develops slowly, naturally, as trust is built between them.

Once we reach the end of the story, we can only be proud of Naia and the growth she has had, and I can assure you that all the suffering was worth it!

It was so nice to be able to revisit this title as an audiobook, the narrators did an incredibile job! This title is already available (also on KU) but I highly recommend the audiobook to anyone who prefers it or wants to give it a try.

Thank you to Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, and the author for an ALC copy of this book!

I really liked the writing style of this. The story was tragic but lovely, and the characters were really easy to understand and like. This had a lot of TW and content warnings that I don’t usually read but I actually was able to really enjoy this one, which I’m glad I requested this without reading all the warnings because I probably would have never picked it up.

The back and forth on the timeline was pretty simple to keep up with and I liked getting to experience the full story rather than just being told. It was interesting to get to know the gods and the relationship between Naia and Solaris, they were both victims of their mothers.

I liked the building relationship between Naia and Ronin and the full backstory behind them. The information was slowly given to us and not just dumped all at one time and I really liked the author’s ability to do that.

The narrator did a really great job with the characters and the pacing.

Thank you NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Randi Garner for the advanced copies of this book!

The first in a series, I was engaged from the start. This is my type of book !

Naia is the daughter of a powerful sea goddess. She has no title and no powers and is treated as inferior by her mother. She’s been betrothed to be married on her 800th birthday and on the day of the wedding, she makes a deal with the High God of Death and becomes cursed.

She makes off to the mortal land and runs into Ronin. They embark on a journey to find Finnian, her brother, to help hide her from their mother who is determined to return Naia and make her follow through on the betrothal.

This goes between past and present and the past scenes were heartbreaking to see the emotional abuse and abandonment between Naia and her mother. There’s so much to unpack here as her unknown curse comes into play and the cat and mouse to get her back to her world.

A refreshing and unique take on god and goddesses. Naia was a great FMC, I loved her !! Loved the romance vibes as well.

While rooted in Greek mythology, this takes a different look and covers a large time span.

I will definitely be marking my calendar for the next book (March 5, 2025!)

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC in exchange for an honest review. Kindle edition out now. Audiobook Release date 2/25/25!

4.5⭐️

*WARNING: slight spoilers ahead!

Wow what a story! I was immediately hooked. There was so much tension and uncertainty and I was constantly kept on my toes dying to see what happened next. I can honestly say that nothing was predictable and I was truly shocked with all the plot twists. I love the soul mates trope, especially when it transcends lifetimes 🥹. Not usually a fan of the pregnancy trope but honestly it didn’t bother me in this one.

I had the pleasure of listening to an ALC and I really enjoyed the narrators in this one! It was a very captivating listen.

I’m super excited to dig in to the next book in this series!

Thank you so much to Dreamscape Media & NetGalley for the ALC!